• Rivalarrival@lemmy.today
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    6
    arrow-down
    27
    ·
    10 months ago

    Couriers (DoorDash, GrubHub, UberEats, etc.) are not employees. They are contractors.

    There is no minimum wage for contractors. The base pay for these services don’t quite cover the $0.655 per mile that the IRS allows drivers to claim in travel expenses. The only money these drivers actually take home is customer tips.

    If you, as a customer, do not believe in tipping couriers directly, that’s perfectly fine, so long as you DO NOT use these services. As these drivers operate almost exclusively on tips, using these services without tipping is socially equivalent to begging in the streets.

    • Nudding@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      27
      ·
      10 months ago

      As these drivers operate almost exclusively on tips, using these services without tipping is socially equivalent to begging in the streets.

      Imagine a system so broken you say shit like this lol.

        • AA5B@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          ·
          edit-2
          10 months ago

          I think the loopholes include:

          • assuming a “take it or leave it” from a huge company to an individual, can ever be a valid contract
          • paying “sufficiently “ for an employee while also delegating business expenses
          • bending the regulations around what is allowable for contracting vs effectively employee
          • skirting regulations on similar legacy business models
          • fraudulent menus and pricing
    • Bonskreeskreeskree@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      ·
      10 months ago

      False. If drivers don’t make enough, they stop driving. Enough stop driving the business has to change their model to entice new drivers. That’s how you bring about change. Not sitting online complaining, hoping that the government will get off their asses and fix it

    • Sterile_Technique@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      edit-2
      10 months ago

      They’re employees being exploited by a loophole. DoorDash n’ friends are predatory businesses, and are a great example of why we need better regulations on this kind of shit.

      • Rediphile@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        10 months ago

        It’s not a loophole or predatory, it’s just something the people doing these one-off job knowingly agreed to. I myself certainly agreed to it years back each and every time I accepted another order. The key was to not agree to orders that don’t make any fucking sense. It was all optional.

        I don’t know how we could ever regulate away the issue of people who decide not to act in their own best interest. Probably best to focus on education or something?

    • magnetosphere@kbin.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      10 months ago

      I refuse to use these services for three reasons. One, I think they’re unnecessary. Two, I think they’re unreliable. Three, I think they’re exploitative.

    • JCreazy@midwest.social
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      10 months ago

      I don’t see how it’s my responsibility to give my money that I earned doing my job to someone else for doing their job and I shouldn’t have to avoid the service because of that. If I want to use the service I should be able to because, why not, I want to. I shouldn’t give that up just because someone wants me to pay their wages.

    • AA5B@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      10 months ago

      This is why I don’t use those services. They are both predatory, and taking advantage of regulatory loopholes

      They do need to be fixed somehow though. I have elderly relatives with mobility issues who can really benefit from these services. Beyond more transparency and fixing the regulatory gaps, I don’t k ow how to make it both more fair to the gig worker and more affordable to those who need it though.

      Maybe a subscription model? I’d pay Uber Eats a fixed price for my Mom to get as much delivery as she needs, assuming an even playing field we’re established

    • Rediphile@lemmy.ca
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      10 months ago

      What do you suppose would happen if everyone all at once just stopped tipping and kept using the service? Like I’m serious, what do you actually think would happen?